Thank you everyone for that final push! We finished strong and are talking to printers already about next steps. In the meantime, we're charging everyone's cards and will be addressing any special cases over the next week. Thanks again, and can't wait to get this book made for you!
Zoop Presents: The Whistling Skull - Special Edition Hardcover
by Tony Harris, B. Clay Moore, Dave McCaig, Wes Abbot
The definitive edition of this out-of-print classic is here!
Originally released as a JSA Liberty Files six-issue series by DC Comics, the story has now been updated, re-establishing it as it was originally envisioned by the creators.
$21,773
supported of $10,000
196
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EXPLORE OUR Rewards
$25
Digital copy
20 claimed
PDF, now expanded to 168 pages!
$50
Hardcover
97 claimed
8.5 x 11 Hardcover, now expanded to 168 pages!
$75
Signed Hardcover
21 claimed
8.5 x 11 Hardcover, now expanded to 168 pages! Signed by B. Clay Moore & Tony Harris
$100
Remarqued Hardcover
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8.5 x 11 Hardcover, now expanded to 168 pages! Signed by B. Clay Moore & Tony Harris, with a one-of-a-kind sketch by Tony Harris drawn onto the bookplate.
$75
EVERYTHING Bundle
5 claimed
Hardcover, Two 8x11 high quality art prints, pin & vinyl sticker
$300
Head Sketch by Tony Harris
6 / 11 claimed
8.5 x 11, pencil, ink, greywash of any character of your choice!
$75
Retailer Bundle - ALL COPIES SIGNED
5 claimed
3 Hardcovers at 50% off retail pricing. All copies signed by Moore & Harris. In order to qualify for this reward, you must be able to provide proof that you are a retailer upon request.
$670
Retailer Bundle + In-store signing event!
25 Hardcovers at a special discount (shipping included) + Tony and Clay in-store signing (travel expenses to be sorted later)
$1
Tip Jar
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Support this project and earn our gratitude!
ADD-ONS
Add ons are only available once you have selected at least one Primary Reward listed above.
$500
Whistling Skull Coffin Box!
0 / 1 claimed
1 of 7 in existence. 13x7x4.5. Hand constructed, painted and weathered by Tony Harris. Tony has one, Clay has one, 4 went to DC editorial, and this one remains. Was originally made to house the original series pitch containing Clay text pieces, series overview, props and trinkets hand made by Tony related to the property. It will have Tony's signature.
$25
Two Art Prints
1 claimed
Two 8 x 11 high quality giclees. Scroll down to PRINTS / SKETCHES to see in greater detail
$8
Pin & Vinyl Sticker
8 claimed
3 x 3, Skull Logo
UNAVAILABLE
$300
Head Sketch by Tony Harris
14 / 14 claimed
8.5 x 11, pencil, ink, greywash of any character of your choice!
Story
In a remote village in Switzerland, the townsfolk face a terrible threat. People keep disappearing without warning or explanation, and the authorities are powerless to help. But the secret organization known as the Skeleton is aware that something sinister is going on, and they've dispatched their top agents to investigate: the eerie crimefighter known as the Whistling Skull!
With his assistant Knuckles at his side, the Skull can draw on the benefits of decades of crimefighting to uncover what's happening in the village. But this is not the same hero who went on all of those adventures. The last Whistling Skull disappeared after fighting side-by-side with the heroes of his generation, and though his predecessor has the memories and skills of every man who has come before him...he's never been on a mission before.
Can the new Whistling Skull prevail when faced with pure evil? Or will the horrors that were inflicted on the village soon spread to the entire world?
From an Entertainment Weekly review:
The Whistling Skull is at once a throwback to pulp fiction of the 1930s and 1940s (think Doc Savage and Sax Rohmer’s Fu Manchu novels) and a witty, grim and poignant tale.
The Whistling Skull and his sidekick, Knuckles, are actually William Massey and Nigel Singleton, Brit boyhood friends who’ve grown up to fight Nazis and other criminals in 1940s Europe. Tony Harris, who has done such marvelous artwork on books including DC’s Starman, is superb (along with colorist Dave McCaig) at conjuring up foggy menace, using dark greens, grays, and sallow yellows as his primary colors to (barely) illuminate figures drawn with lantern jaws and thick bristly eyebrows of determination.
B. Clay Moore’s script has The Whistling Skull roaming Europe driving a gigantic Art Deco auto dubbed The Battlewagon. Skull and Knuckles out of costume are like creations born of a cross between Arthur Conan Doyle and P.G. Wodehouse. The mysteries are well thought-out; the humor is boisterous; the crime-fighting is bone-crunching.
***These characters were originally brought into the DC Comics universe through the JSA Liberty Files: The Whistling Skull series, but the story has been tweaked for this Zoop campaign by Moore and Harris, re-establishing the world of the Whistling Skull (and Knuckles) as originally intended.
Preview
For this new collection, we've added some brand new characters, dialogue and lettering, and original series colorist Dave McCaig tweaked the color to guarantee the art leaps off the page the way we want it to when printed! Check it out:
Prints / Sketches
Two 8x11 Art Prints
Sample Head Sketches by Tony Harris:
Cover Process
Tony Harris describes how he created a brand new cover for this collection:
"I started with my 2 models in full costume and we did a very involved photo shoot. I had a really clear idea for what i wanted to achieve, so it was really about the lighting, props and “The Gag”. We shot until i felt everything was spot on. Then i produced a detailed drawing working out any problems in the composition and infusing the character’s personality into the illustration. Then, after coating illustration board with grey gesso I could blow up my drawing to 20x 30 and transfer to the board. Then i moved onto tightening up the drawing adding in all the darks and blacks and airbrushing all the color with transparent acrylic paint. And completing the art with color pencils for all the medium and lighter tones and a final pass for absolute whites and special effects, before sealing with a matte varnish."
Bios
B. Clay Moore is a comic book writer who first achieved notoriety as the writer and co-creator of Hawaiian Dick, first published in 2002 by Image Comics. Since then, he has co-created Battle Hymn with Jeremy Haun, The Expatriate with Jason Latour for Image Comics and The Leading Man, also with Jeremy Haun, for Oni Press. Moore has also written for Marvel, DC, Slave Labor Graphics, Top Cow, Archie, Lion Forge, Devil's Due and Viz, among others.
Tony Harris is a comic book artist, known for his work on series such as Starman, Iron Man and Ex Machina. He has been nominated for nineteen Eisner Awards and has won two -- in 1997 for Best Penciller/Inker Team (with Wade Von Grawbadger) for Starman, and in 2005 for Best New Series (with Brian K Vaughan and Tom Fesiter) for Ex Machina.
Stretch Goals
Example of Tony Harris' comprehensive notes and rough sketches (perfect for 'process junkies'!)
Timeline
Zoop will be working closely with the creators to make sure everything stays as on schedule as possible and rewards get delivered in timely manner. All of the files are ready for print, including the pages that were tweaked to remove the DC characters that were in the book's previous iteration. We plan on getting all of the post-campaign data & pledges sorted in late December, and then heading to the printers at the very beginning of 2023. Printing and shipping should take around three to four months from that point, so delivery of rewards is expected to be done around May 2023.
The pandemic has shown that certain conditions are simply out of anybody’s hands. However, Zoop will always be here to communicate with backers should any delays occur, if there’s confusion about delivery, or if any other concerns pop up.
updates
1 month ago
Great Finish!
Zoop
1 month ago
Final Day!
ZoopIt's the final 24 hours of the campaign and it's been an amazing finale! All three stretch goals have now been unlocked, adding 36 pages of additional backmatter material! This is the definitive edition of this out-of-print classic -- not just restoring the original vision of the creators but also including a lot of behind-the-scenes material!
This is also your last chance to add Tony Harris sketches to your order -- we've moved that Add-on into the Rewards section for easier access. So go grab one while they're still available -- only 7 left out of 25!
Thanks everyone for your support, and let's finish strong!
1 month ago
Cover Gallery stretch goal unlocked!
ZoopWe're entering into the homestretch now and are picking up some nice momentum. Yesterday the 2nd stretch goal - adding a cover gallery to the backmatter of the book - was unlocked! We're not too far from the 3rd stretch goal, which would add another 8 pages of backmatter. When all is said & done, this book is gonna look pretty bad-ass!
Also, because there were some return supporters looking to add Tony Harris sketches to their order, we've moved that Add-on into the Rewards section for easier access. So go grab one while they're still available -- only 9 left out of the 25 he made available!
Thanks everyone for your support, and let's finish strong!
1 month ago
First Stretch Goal Down!
ZoopCongrats! We passed the $15k mark, so that means 22 extra pages will be added to the backmatter of the book with Tony's Comprehensive Notes.
Here's the first of four videos that he recently posted giving you a closer look at all of that cool extra material:
2 months ago
Updated Stretch Goals
ZoopOK we've added more specifics to the Stretch Goals section. Check out those notes and sketches that can be added to the back of the book if we reach the first one!
2 months ago
Great First Day!
ZoopThanks you to all of the supporters that came out on Day 1 to get us off to a great start! By popular demand, we've added some more remarques by Tony. We're approaching funding, and would appreciate everyone's help in spreading the word so we can start aiming for some stretch goals.
Check out Clay & Tony's socials for announcements about various podcasts that they're appearing on to promote the book:
https://twitter.com/bclaymoore
https://twitter.com/TONYFINGHARRIS
In the meantime, here's a page from the book that Clay just posted that we especially love:
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Does Zoop save my credit card info?
Zoop does not store or keep your credit card info. Stripe simply holds the credit card info until the end of a successful campaign and then charges it. It is strictly for this one time use and won't charge it ever again.
What does Zoop use for checkout and when would my credit card be charged?
We use Stripe for checkout because it is VERY secure. They exceed industry security standards and are trusted by thousands of companies, including Amazon, Lyft, Slack, Shopify, and Airbnb, who use Stripe's software tools to accept payments. Their interface is pre-made by them and we don't have the ability to augment it in any way. Once there, you have 15 minutes to complete the transaction by hitting the 'SAVE CARD' button.
If the campaign doesn't fund, your pre-order will be canceled, and the pending charge will disappear. You'll get an email confirmation with a summary of rewards and charges both after the initial pledge and after the actual charging of the card (try looking in your spam folder if you don't happen to see it in your inbox).
How do I cancel a transaction?
You can either access the transaction through your account and click the cancel button, or contact us at hello@wearezoop.com and we'll cancel it for you and send back a confirmation email.
Cancellations of rewards or add-ons of $500 or more must be made before there are 72 hours left in the campaign. The reason for this is it can have a negative effect on the tally of the campaign. If it is a limited reward or add-on, there may not be sufficient time for someone else to purchase it, leaving the campaign possibly not funded. We ask for your courtesy of the people running the campaign when making these decisions.
Any other questions/ comments?
Please e-mail us at hello@wearezoop.com and we'll get right back to you!
If I got a reward that requires some feedback from me, how do I let you know my request?
You could e-mail us at hello@wearezoop.com with that info during the campaign if you'd like to get it out of the way. Otherwise, we'll be reaching out to all supporters of rewards that require feedback shortly after the campaign is over.
Do you ship to my country?
Our campaigns are for a worldwide audience unless stated otherwise in the campaign. All international orders are sold with the terms DAP (Delivered At Place). You are responsible for any duties and taxes required for the shipment's entry into your country. Our carriers may require you to pay taxes and fees related to importation and customs brokerage of your shipment -- but if your item is really low in value, it may fall under the customs de minimis of most countries. For more information, please contact USPS
Where can I find your shipping rates?
Since we have an a la carte rewards system, shipping rates will vary from supporter to supporter. We use a weight-based calculation system in your checkout cart, though, so, after you enter your country, you'll be able to see it calculated in real time with each item you add.
If I purchase rewards and then want to make changes to that purchase later on in the campaign, what is the process?
If you want to make changes, you should first cancel your original order and then start over with a new one. If you don't do that and simply process an additional order, the way our system is currently set up you may end up being overcharged for shipping -- which we could remedy for you, but it just takes that extra step of catching it and crediting you back the extra shipping, so please try the prior way first.
Will there be a post-campaign period where you can make changes and get add-ons through a 'pledge manager'?
No - this is it! We're essentially your in-campaign pledge manager. If you are interested in supporting these creators, this is the time to do it! And it's the exact reason we allow you to purchase as many rewards as you want during the campaign!
What's the idea behind the Rewards and Add-Ons? Can I get both?
Rewards are the priority items that the creators have chosen for the campaign. Add-Ons are meant to be secondary items that are 'unlocked' after you buy something from the Reward level. There are no restrictions on buying Rewards, but you can only buy Add-Ons if you've bought a Reward. Zoop sets this up under the direction of the creators. Some may choose to only have Rewards, some may choose an even balance of Rewards and Add-Ons, and others may choose to only have one or two Rewards with the rest of the items being Add-Ons.
Can I get more than 1 item?
Yes! We encourage you to get more than 1 item! That could be multiple copies of the same reward, or you can mix and match rewards! There is no limit, unless otherwise stated in the reward description.